Distress a painted frame with wax!

I have a fun DIY project for you today: How to distress a painted frame with wax!

It all begins with a simple unfinished wood frame from the craft store. Like this one!

Unfinished wood pieces at craft stores are very inexpensive, which is great when you want to create a bit of home decor on a budget.

This frame has a bit of a defect where the two wood “braids” meet at the bottom. No worries – I’ll cover that up easily later!

Step One: Paint your frame with a chalky finish paint, in a color that matches your decor. I chose my go-to favorite chalk paint color: Vintage, which is from the DecoArt Americana Decor line of chalky finish paints. One coat of paint is all that’s needed. Let dry. (Chalky finish paints dry quickly, which is nice!)

You’ve seen Tammy and I do many painted projects where we’ve distressed the finish, usually by sanding.

You can use tinted wax to achieve a similar distressed, time-worn appearance. It’s easier than sanding, and for small projects like picture frames it is faster too. I like to use the brown creme wax from DecoArt’s Americana Decor line, as it’s specifically formulated to work with their chalky finish paints. (Most chalk paint brands have waxes to complement their paints.)

Step Two: Using a stencil brush or small paint brush, apply the brown creme wax to a small section of your frame at a time, then wipe the wax off with a white rag or paper towel. The brush will help you get the wax into all of the nooks and crannies. When you wipe the wax off, you’re left with a beautifully aged-looking finish. The brown wax stays behind (in the nooks and crannies) and highlights any designs or patterns in the wood.

Here’s what the frame looks like with a section covered in brown wax, just before I’m about to wipe it off:

Tip: If this is your first time using wax over chalk paint, either purchase two frames – so you have one frame to practice with first – or begin using the wax on the back of your frame, where nobody will see your first attempts.

Another Tip: Keep any frame inserts inside of the frame, even if you remove the glass. (In my case, there was no glass piece included.) Keeping these paper frame inserts in place allows you to be sloppy with the paint and wax.

Here’s the insert, which I removed once the waxing was done, before it dried:

Step Three: Cut a piece of printed burlap or fabric of your choice to fit inside the frame. I took a 6×6 piece of printed burlap and cut it to fit into the 5×5 frame opening.

Put it all together, and admire your vintage-style wall decor!

I added a piece of vintage lace seam binding – wrapped around the bottom of the frame twice, then tied into a knot – to easily cover up that wood imperfection I showed you earlier. Here’s a close-up:

Comments

Lovelovelove this project! I would not have been even remotely interested in the unfinished frame, but the paint and wax transformed it into a real beauty! And the printed burlap piece is stunning… it looks as if you stenciled it yourself! xoxo

That’s how I felt about the frame when I bought it, Pat: it sat on my shelf for quite some time until I could figure out what to do with it. Now I want to make more of them! And yes – those burlap pads of printed burlap designs are so pretty! This particular design reminded me of an old wallpaper or embroidered background. 🙂Laura Kuhlmann recently posted…DIY Burlap Bookmarks made in 10 minutes!